From Earth to Spirit

Indigenous art from Arnhem Land & the Tiwi Islands, NT

Exhibition Dates: 17 February to 24 March 2016

Please join us for the exhibition opening to be launched by Dr Ray Kelly: Friday19 February at 5:30pm at the University Gallery

This exhibition features works by Australian Indigenous artists from Arnhem Land and the Tiwi Islands, both situated in Australia's Northern Territory. While culturally and linguistically distinct, the practices of mark making, painting and carving – with roots in storytelling and ceremony – are deeply embedded within Tiwi and Arnhem Land cultural and spiritual traditions.

These artists have long been making artworks from natural ochres, using imagery that expresses their profound knowledge of and connection to Country, its creation stories and its ceremonies. Earth and spirit come together in almost every aspect of Indigenous life – universal law, ceremony, sacred sites, and in artworks that through their making become infused with ancestral power.

From Earth to Spirit presents a range of art works from the University Collection in various mediums including bark paintings, ochres on canvas, works on paper, prints and carvings. This includes paintings recently donated by Dr Milton Roxanas, through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program, and further works loaned by friends of the University Gallery: Aboriginal & Pacific Art Gallery, Sydney and private collector, Catherine Croll.